Kiosk 'Railroading' Provokes Storm

The expensive new kiosks in the Yard met with sharp criticism this week from a growing list of undergraduate organizations, including the Student Assembly and the student caucus of the Committee on Houses and Undergraduate Life (CHUL).

Condemning administrators for "railroading" the $40,000 kiosks through CHUL last spring, the assembly voted unanimously to urge the University to delay enforcement of new regulations for hanging posters until CHUL has reconsidered them at its first meeting in November.

Student caucus members said yesterday that when CHUL takes the issue up again, it will push for major changes in the rules, which now prohibit outdoor postering except on the kiosks, and impose stiff penalties--a $25 fine on the first violation and revocation of University privileges for repeated violations.

"We obviously can't ask the University to rip the kiosks out of the ground, but we will push for better maintenance, ask the University to make the rule apply only to the Yard, and see to it that if any organization is going to have its official privileges revokes, it happens only with the consent of the full CHUL, not just the dean's office," Michael G. Colantuono '83, a caucus member, said yesterday.

The assembly's resolution, though sharply worded, was actually a toned-down version of a proposal by representatives of the Black Students Association and the Gay Students Association, who wanted the assembly to call for all undergraduate organizations to boycott the new regulations.

Although Archie C. Epps, dean of students, said this week no fines have yet been imposed, several student organizations have already received warnings for violations.

Phillips Brooks House, which received a warning last week, is "very dissatisfied" with the kiosks, Mirai Chatterjee, president of PBH, said yesterday, "The kiosks are totally insufficient--they are always covered with hundreds of old posters and it's impossible to see anything on them," she added.

The Third World Center Organization, which also received a warning, has had its publicity efforts "severely inhibited" by the kiosks, Lydia P. Jackson '82, a member of the organization, said yesterday. "I think the fact that the University can spend $40,000 in a blink of an eye for kiosks but has refused to provide a Third World center for ten years shows badly misplaced priorities," she added.

House film societies, which rely heavily on posters for advertising, may suffer financially from the new kiosks, Arthur D. Babitz '81, president of the Leverett House Film Society, said yesterday, adding that he will send a letter of protest on behalf of all the House film societies to Epps this week.

Maddy DeLone, president of the Harvard-Radcliffe Dramatic Club, said yesterday the kiosk rule could hurt attendance at student drama productions. "It's a phenomenal drag," she added.